Short Meeting (Photo credit: Accretion Disc)
“If you live in America in the 21st century you’ve probably had to listen to a lot people tell you how busy they are.”
This is how author Tim Kreider opens his New York Times essay “The Busy Trap” that describes people’s need to perceive themselves as busy as a means of justifying their existence. While Kreider is commenting on life in general, his suggestion that we stop valuing busyness as a positive has relevance to anyone in management.
The crush of busyness defines management life today. Executives I work with are at their desks early and leave late. In between they bounce from meeting to meeting. Evenings are spent catching up on email. Time for them means not having enough of it.
Sometimes time can be a wonderful excuse for not doing something but in reality the urgency of time becomes a curse; it prevents from doing two critical things: one, making time for others; and two, making time for ourselves. I am not talking about work life balance; I am referring to the imbalance that two much busyness imposes on work itself.
Not all managers ricochet from meeting to meeting. Good ones have found ways to carve out blocks of time from their schedules the way that sculptors shape stone. And once that time is carved it becomes like sculpture permanent. That is it stays open except in cases of extreme emergency. This becomes the time when managers do their real work – meeting with direct reports and reflecting on their performance.
From these folks I have learned a few rules that I can share.
Value your time. Regard time as an asset that like money must be managed well. If it is squandered it may be the same as making a poor investment. And it is because you have wasted it. Prioritizing tasks can help you focus on what is important and what can be eliminated if they do not add value to the enterprise.
Delegate meetings to others. This is a terrific way to groom people for more responsibility. Give them authority to speak for you at meetings. When doing so make certain they find ways to manage their time effectively, too – in part by delegating to others.
Use free time to reflect. The late Skip LeFauve who ran GM’s Saturn Division in the Nineties told me that if you want to reflect, then you had to schedule it. For Skip reflection was not a solo endeavor; he would do it with a trusted colleague, typically when discussing people development issues. Others make time for selves by keeping one free afternoon a week or every other week.
Managing your time very often is not easy because you may not be in control of your schedule. Events happen. Customers need assistance. Things go wrong. The manager must respond. But day-to-day – unless you are a first responder for fire, safety or health – your schedule is not so chaotic. You can take control if you choose to do so.
Addressing that issue may seem existential but in management it is more practical. If you want to manage appropriately and lead your people effectively you need to make time work for you not against you. Time is not the enemy per se; how we manage it is the challenge.
